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it’s possible for you to usually pick it up forabout $320.

Gigabyte’s X870 Eagle Wi-Fi 7 costsabout $210, making it a great alternative to my top pick.

Gigabyte X870E AORUS Elite WiFi

The Ryzen 9 9950X is an outstanding CPU for gaming or for creative work.

Best for white builds

Need a motherboard to match your all-white build?

Compact pick

Building a mini ITX PC and need a motherboard to fit?

It’s usually available forabout $450; you definitely pay a premium for the compact size.

Gigabyte X870 Eagle

Thebest motherboardsfor the Ryzen 9 9950X allow it to realize its full potential, which includes overclocking.

My runner-up pick, the Gigabyte X870 Eagle Wi-Fi 7, is a better bargain atabout $210.

It usually costs somewherearound $700.

ASRock X870 PRO RS

Do I need a BIOS update for Ryzen 9000 CPUs?

Building or upgrading a PC with a newly released processor sometimes comes with some motherboard compatibility hiccups.

In the past, you needed to have a CPU installed in the board to update the BIOS.

ASUS ROG Crosshair X870E

And since the latest chips wouldn’t work without the update, you needed an older CPU.

However, with new motherboards, a BIOS flashback function has solved the problem.

Hit the button on the board, and it performs the update from there on its own.

ASUS ROG Strix X870-I Gaming WiFi

Is the Ryzen 9 9950X good for gaming?

AMD’s Ryzen 9 9950X is the top-tier chip announced in the first run of 9000-series processors.

It boasts 16 cores, 32 threads, a 5.7GHz boost clock, and a 170W TDP.

ASUS Prime B650-Plus WiFi

It will absolutely crush gaming to the point that it will probably be overkill for most PC gamers.

AMD Ryzen 9 9950X in AM5 motherboard socket

The Ryzen 9 9950X is an outstanding CPU for gaming or for creative work.

Windows Central Best Award

Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX ATX

ASUS TUF GAMING X670E Plus WiFi

AMD Ryzen 9 7000

Header image with Z790 motherboards for the 14900K

AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D slotted into ASRock X870E Taichi board

AMD Ryzen 9 7000

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Founders Edition power adapter in box

Asus Rog Zephyrus G14 Ryzen

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang addresses participants at the keynote of CES 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on January 6, 2025.

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Founders Edition (front) compared to RTX 5090 Founders Edition (rear)

Nintendo Switch 2 on the left with ROG Ally and ROG Ally X on the right.

Nintendo Switch 2 and Steam Deck on peach background.

MSI Claw 8 AI+ flat on a table with a Steam Deck below it.

MSI Claw 8 AI+ propped up next to an ROG Ally X on a table.

NVIDIA RTX 5070 vs. RTX 5070 Ti

AMD RX 9000

Marathon gameplay reveal